Wang Shouwen, China’s former ‘foot soldier’ now promoted to ‘general’ in US-China trade talks

The vice-commerce minister is Vice-Premier Liu He’s deputy and chief translator in the trade talks with the likes of US trade representative Robert Lighthizer

The 53-year-old has spent the majority of his 30-year career focused almost entirely on Chinese foreign trade

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China’s Vice-Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen (seated, far right) began his career as a junior official at the then Chinese foreign trade ministry in 1989. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 8:15am, 15 Mar 2019Updated: 4:53pm, 15 Mar 2019

Wang Shouwen, the top deputy in China’s trade negotiation team, remained silent over the specifics of the ongoing US-China trade talks earlier this month, instead choosing to reveal details of the lunch menu Vice-Premier Liu He shared with his US counterpart.

Liu opted for the traditional American staple, the hamburger, while US trade representative Robert Lighthizer chose Asian-style stir-fried chicken with eggplant. The two skipped tea or coffee and drank boiled water, a Chinese custom.

This was a clear sign of Beijing and Washington’s shared goal to find common ground in the trade talks, Wang insisted.

The practised way that Wang disclosed selective information that advances a negotiation, while holding back technical details that may still be in dispute, has helped the 53-year-old move up the ladder from junior official at the then Chinese foreign trade ministry in 1989 to Vice-Commerce Minister over the last three decades.

Wang Shouwen has climbed the bureaucratic ladder within China’s Ministry of Commerce. Photo: Xinhua

From his prominent position inside one of China’s most powerful ministries, Wang is at the centre of talks that will influence the country’s economic future and future relations between the world’s two largest economies.